Japan cuts from almost nothing to next to nothing

Share via

The Bank of Japan has sliced the country’s wafer-thin benchmark interest rates
a notch closer to zero in a desperate bid to stop a bleak economic outlook
turning worse.

Although the move took Tokyo’s dealing rooms by surprise yesterday, it had
been widely expected since last week that the Japanese central bank would be
forced to lower its forecasts for the economy. Many believe that what was
once Asia’s biggest economy may suffer a contraction of GDP in the fourth
quarter as consumers stop spending.

Despite years of efforts to the contrary, Japan remains in the destructive
grip of deflation